The J Street Education Fund has taken out an ad that takes issue with Elie Wieselâ€™s criticism of Obama on building in Jerusalem. But J Street doesnâ€™t merely call for a housing freeze or for outlying Arab neighborhoods to be ceded to a Palestinian state. Using the mouthpiece of former Knesset member Yossi Sarid, the J Streeters want to divide the Old City. Oh, yes:

Barack Obama appears well aware of his obligations to try to resolve the worldâ€™s ills, particularly ours here. Why then undercut him and tie his hands? On the contrary, letâ€™s allow him to use his clout to save us from ourselves, to help both bruised and battered nations and free them from their prison. Then he can push both sides to divide the city into two capitals â€” to give Jewish areas to the Jews and Arab areas to the Arabs â€“ and assign the Holy Basin to an agreed on international authority.

As an alarmed reader e-mails: â€œThey specifically want to remove Israeli sovereignty over the Old City. I mean, they want the Western Wall NOT to be in Israeli hands. Wow.â€

Wow, indeed. There is no mainstream Jewish organization that takes this position, and I dare say J Street wouldnâ€™t find 5 percent of American Jews who do. Moreover, there is zero support for such a position within Israel. So J Streetâ€™s recommendation would be what? â€” that this be part of an imposed settlement on the Jewish state? It seems that the mask has been dropped and that J Street now reveals its true colors â€” which happen to be pretty much the same as the Palestiniansâ€™. The question remains: does the Obama administration agree? Stay tuned.

This entry was posted
on Thursday, April 29th, 2010 and is filed under opinion.